Do you know how much food you waste every day? You’d be surprised by how much goes to waste in your kitchen on a daily basis. Even if you try to reduce organic waste by only cooking the “right” amount of food to feed your family, there are other ways of wasting food that you’d never think about!

Here are a few ways to avoid and reduce waste in your kitchen:

Use a peeler – Peeling veggies with a knife may seem easier, but you usually end up wasting more of the veggies than you should. A potato peeler is the ideal tool for the job, as it only slices off the peel. You should also use your peeler in place of a spiralizer, as the fancy machine wastes a lot of food!

Blend, don’t process -- Food processors may waste a bit more food than you might like, and they won’t even chop the food completely. Instead, use a high speed blender to chop all of your veggies, make your hummus, and blend your soups. You waste far less that way!

Chop your garlic -- Using a garlic press may feel fancy, but all garlic presses waste a lot of garlic. There’s nothing better than crushing your garlic with the flat of the knife, or simply dicing it before adding into your food.

Make pasta by hand -- Electric pasta makers are a waste of time, electricity, money, and food! The machine will break down far quicker than it should, and it wastes a lot of energy. You can easily use a hand-cranked pasta maker to turn out amazing homemade pasta, and it’s cheaper, easier to use, and wastes far less food.

Eat melons and watermelons the normal way -- Yes, a melon/watermelon ball salad looks amazing on Pinterest, but a lot of the melon goes to waste every time you produce those balls. It’s better to eat your melons and watermelons the normal, messy way–cut into slices!

Use a stick blender -- While a heavy-duty countertop mixer can help you to make cake batter, cookie dough, and other foods more quickly, it uses A LOT more energy than you’d expect. A stick blender (also known as an immersion blender) will be much more efficient, reduce your chance of splashing, and use less energy.

Get rid of the microwave -- Microwaves use A LOT of electricity, and they eliminate all of the nutrients from the food you’re eating. They’re the least healthy appliance in the kitchen, so you’d do well to get rid of it. You can always use a convection oven, or simply heat up the food on the stove the good old-fashioned way. The food is much healthier, too!

Blend, don’t juice -- While juicing may be all the rage these days, you have no idea how much healthy fiber is wasted producing a single cup of juice! That fiber would be better in your body than in the waste disposal! Juicers are also incredibly time-consuming to clean. If you want to save time and reduce waste, use a blender to make juices and smoothies!

Buy knives that last -- Cheap knives may feel like a money-saving bargain, but you’ll end up paying for it in the long run! A $20 set of knives will last a few months, and they won’t stay sharp for long. It’s better to buy a more expensive brand of knife, as they will hold their edge better, last longer, and help you to cut food with a lot more precision–reducing food waste!